Love Exists
by DaseyRulesTheWorld
Summary: When Casey's boyfriend goes too far Derek realizes how much he really loves her. Rated M for some language and small slightly graphic scene. Please add in your review if you want me to write a sequel, because people keep saying "Update soon" but it's over
1. Henry

AN: This is the last story I will be starting for a while. I'm not going to start anymore stories until I finish at least a few of the ones I keep procrastinating on. I was writing a chapter to my "Creeping out Casey" story and this idea came to me.

Derek walked into Casey's room. She was gone doing a lame extracurricular thing at school. He opened up her diary, her new boyfriend was making her act different recently. He flipped to the most recent entry.

"_Tonight I went out to dinner with Henry. We went to the new restaurant, Pinky's, and it was great! We got a booth where the window had a nice view of the lake."_

"The lake?" Derek said to himself. "That's pretty far away." He thought. Further north and a lot more upscale then where he was right now. He wanted to know what else was happening.

"After we ate he took me for a walk by the bridge and kissed me. He said my hair glowed wonderfully in the moonlight. I told him about my new lyrical dance class I'm taking. So he put some music on his phone and we danced together. The only problem was that his hands were a little too low for my comfort, but he's so sweet that it was probably an accident."

"Are you kidding me?" Derek asked the diary. "He only wants to get you in bed. I'm the one that loves you." He said without understanding why. "No I don't." He corrected himself. He decided to read the rest of the entry because Casey would be home soon.

"When we got back home nobody else was around so he kissed me again. It ended up to be a make-out session on the couch. He got a little handsy, but he understands me too well to actually try having sex. He wouldn't try that because he says that he loves me. Well it's been a good day today.

Love,

Casey McDonald"

"He doesn't love you." Derek closed the diary. He was really angry inside, but he didn't get why. The last week all he's been able to think about was Casey. He thought about how cute her outfits were, how pretty she looked, how soft her skin was. He stopped himself when he heard Casey from down the stairs.

"I'm home." She yelled up to him. They were home alone. He went down to see her. He wanted to know what else happened on her date. "Hey Derek." She said when she saw him.

"Hey, is something wrong?" He asked her. She had a frown on her face. He wanted to help her. They sat on the couch.

"I'm just tired, had a long night last night." She explained. This was the perfect chance for him to get the Intel he wanted. "Well Henry and I were kissing and then he… tried to seduce me." Casey said with a shudder.

"That sucks." Derek said. He wasn't going to let any guy come close to her virginity. Her spirit was kind and pure. And she always carried herself well. "But nothing happened right?" He felt the need to ask.

"Of course not." Casey answered. "He loves me too much, he even told me that." Casey said. She got up and started walking to the kitchen. Derek was glad knowing she was safe for now.

She sat at one of the stools eating some yogurt. He stared at her legs, they were soft and long. He grunted to himself for thinking stuff like that. Casey looked over. "Something wrong with you?" She asked him.

"No." He told her while getting up. "Nothing at all." He walked up the stairs. He went into his room and sat on his bed. He had no clue what was going on. "Oh Shit." He said to himself. "I love her."

He sat for 2 hours thinking about this. Casey went into her room. He wanted to see her. He needed to see her. He walked in as she was putting on lip gloss. He smelled the cherry flavoring, it was good.

"What do you want Derek?" She asked while putting the cap on the lip gloss. She was getting ready for dinner with Henry. She grabbed the new necklace he had gotten her and put it around her neck.

"I lo, lo, love, uh, uh, uh you" He stuttered in 1 breath. "I love you" He old her this time with a straight face. Casey's jaw dropped in shock. "I love you." He repeated himself. He put his hand on her shoulder.

"No you don't." Casey told him. He couldn't love her. "You can't. I love Henry and he loves me." She heard the doorbell ring. "That's him now, how could you even say that. You don't love me." She told him. "That's not something you shouldn't lie about." She ran down the stairs.

He stood motionless, how could she do that to him? He put his head in his hands with anger. The front door of the house closed. He went into his room. "Why did I tell her?" He asked himself numerous times.

………………………………………….

The hockey game was over and he was going to throw away his empty bag of chips when 2 car doors closed outside the house. Derek hid on the stairs. Casey jiggled the doorknob but walked in with Henry.

"That was a good movie." Casey told him. Henry smiled and closed the door behind him. He took off his coat, not a good sign. "I had fun." She added. He smiled at her. Derek couldn't believe Casey was ok wearing that short skirt around him.

"Me too." Henry told her. They stood there for a while before sitting on the couch. He leaned in and kissed Casey lightly on the cheek. Casey smiled, Henry smiled, Derek narrowed his eyes.

He kissed her on the lips now and she kissed him back. Henry's right hand started to glide up her leg. He was at her knee when she swatted him off, he tried again but she was being stubborn.

Casey ended the kiss. "Henry stop it." She told him sternly. She got off the couch. "I don't like it when you do things like that." Derek held in a laugh. Henry stood up now.

"Well what am I supposed to do? I love you and you love me so why don't we take it a step further?" He said. Casey walked over to the door. She didn't want him to be mad but didn't want to go to the next step.

"Because we aren't married. That's why." She told him. He walked over to her and grabbed his coat. "I thought I wouldn't need to explain this to you." She explained to him.

"Well maybe if you don't trust me, we should break up." He said while opening the door. "Which we are. I'm dumping you Casey. We're over." He said. He walked out of the house. Casey was glaring at him intensely.

"Fine, you don't deserve me anyways." She yelled before closing the door. Once the door was closed she felt like her heart was choking her. Derek came down the stairs, she turned to look at him. "You heard all of that didn't you?" She asked him.

"I'm not sorry it didn't work out, he only dated you to get you in bed." Derek said. Casey was angry at him now. "He is a total jerk." Derek continued. Casey nodded in agreement. The door opened, it was Henry.

"Case I'm sorry, I was a total jerk. Please forgive me." He told her. His eyes were soft and convincing. Casey thought about it for a second. "I promise it won't happen again." He added.

"Ok!" She told him with excitement. He kissed her quickly then left for real. Derek was filled with anger. "I told you he understands me." She told him. They walked up the stairs.

……………………………………………………

Casey was annoyed with Derek's gargling as she brushed her teeth. When he finally spit she needed to confront him. "Derek I can't believe you." She started out. Derek started flossing as she spit.

"What are you talking about?" He asked. Casey spit out her water and looked over at him in disbelief. "No, seriously." He told her. They both rolled their eyes simultaneously. Derek tossed the floss he was using into the garbage bin.

"The way you spied on Henry and I today. What happened was none of your business." She said when she finished putting her stuff away. She poured some mouthwash into a cup. Derek laughed and left the bathroom.

Derek closed the door to his bedroom and sat at his desk chair. He had no idea what he was feeling. 'She makes me so angry.' He thought to himself. He logged onto myspace and looked at her page. 'Why can't I stop thinking about her?' He looked at her top friends. He wasn't there.

Henry was the first of course. 'He is no good for her.' Derek thought when seeing the page. He began typing like a maniac. "Here we go!" Derek said to himself. He logged onto her account. He knew what to look for.

He found some messaged between her and Henry. He had to read it.

"I had fun last night at dinner" Casey

"Me too, can't wait for tonight." Henry

"What?" Derek said to himself. They didn't go out on a date tonight. She hadn't gone out at all today, it was Saturday. He read on.

"I'm really nervous for tonight" Casey

"I'll take good care of you" Henry

"You always do" Casey

Derek couldn't believe what he was reading. The door to Casey's room made a noise as she closed it. He wanted to go in and tell her that it would break his heart if Henry got exactly what he was planning for ever since they started going out only a month ago. He decided to read the whole message and make sure it wasn't just his imagination.

"So you'll meet me outside your cul-de-sac at 2 right?" Henry.

"Just wait until you see my outfit" Casey

"I'd rather see it in the back of my truck" Henry

"Well I'd prefer them to be next to the bed." Casey

"Well we don't have a bed because I can't afford a hotel room and we'd be caught at our houses" Henry

Derek grew angrier with each word. He wasn't going to let his poor sweet Casey fall for this loser's tricks. Although he'd like to get them down on paper for future use with her. But right now he needed to save her because he loved her. Derek stopped when he thought of love. "It would never work." He told himself.

"I can deal with this later." He told himself. He needed to get more details. Where would this truck be? He had to keep an eye on her just in case.

"We're going to the club first right?" Casey

"Which one again?" Henry

"Silly goose. The one on 5th and main." Casey

"Right. Club Freak" Henry

"Yep. They do have bathrooms good for sex." Casey

"How would you know?" Henry

"Oh stop joking Cupcake. We've gone there every Saturday night or technically Sunday morning for the past 3 weeks" Casey

"I know that, but nobody else does." Henry

"Of course not, our little secret would be out then" Casey

"Then we would probably be forced to break up by our parents" Henry

"And I would never want that because I love you." Casey

"I love you too" Henry

"That's why I'm ok with having sex with you Henry." Casey

"Well thanks baby girl. I knew you would come around sometime soon." Henry

"Well I know this is both our first times because of our tests we took last weekend." Casey

"Yep totally clean" Henry

Derek had to stop reading. It was 1:45 and he had to stop Casey. He barged into her room without knocking as usual. He came in as she was shirtless. "Oh my god. Is henry in here?" He asked her in a whisper.

"What the hell are you doing in here Derek?" She whispered back to him in shock and anger. She pulled the top over herself before Derek could see much. The only light on in the room was the nightstand light.

"I hacked your myspace and saw everything." He admitted in a slightly louder voice. She turned around with her shirt on this time and stared at him with disbelief. "You guys are going to the club and then to his truck for sex.

Casey grabbed his shirt in his hands to stop him. "You have no business knowing when, where, or who I lose my virginity with." She told him. She released his shirt and took 2 steps back. Derek loved the way she smelled. It was consuming his thoughts.

She heard a car engine close to the house. "That's Henry." She said with excitement. She ran to open the window but Derek got ahead and blocked her. "Derek, you really have a problem with Henry." She told him.

"Case just listen to me." He told her. She relaxed her body and let him speak. "I know Henry. All this sex is going to do is bring a breakup between you guys and I know because I was a man before I fell in love with you." Dean blurted out to her. Casey dropped her jaw as far as it would go.

"I truly and deeply love you." Derek said while looking into her eyes. Casey wanted to turn her head but she couldn't. "If you want to throw your life away with this guy then you have to go through me." Derek said.


	2. Club Freak

Casey was upset, all she wanted to do was go have a good time with her boyfriend then sneak back home. "What happened to 'We aren't married yet, that's why'?" Derek asked her. She looked down then back up at him again. "It was all an act. You guys planned this and threw me off track." He figured out.

"Yes. I've been sneaking out every weekend and you were almost at the point where you would've caught us so we planned that fight yesterday." Casey told him. She pushed Derek away from the window.

"I can't let you do this. Look at yourself slut." He told her. He hated calling her that but she needed to realize what was really going on. Casey looked down at her outfit. "A tube top, short skirt and super pointy heels." Derek told her. She looked down at herself with shame.

She put her head in her hands and sat on her bed. Her phone vibrated in her pocket. It was 2:13 and there was a text from Henry. "Where are you?" It read. Casey looked at Derek. "I have to go." Casey said while opening the window and sticking her leg out. Derek went up and kissed her hard.

She felt fireworks and loved the feeling. Derek was the one to pull away. She put her other leg out of the window and got her feeting correct in the tree. She motioned Derek to come closer. She kissed him quickly and slid her tongue into his mouth. "I'll see you tomorrow morning." She said while climbing down the tree.

Derek watched after her as she ran down the street to a truck and go inside. Derek sat on her bed and decided to wait for her return.

………………………………….

Casey got into the truck and buckled her seatbelt. "Sorry I'm late. Derek heard me getting ready and warned me that you just want to get me in bed." Casey explained. Henry tucked a bit of her dark brown hair behind her ear. "But what we have is special" She told him.

They drove down the street and soon found their way to Club Freak. They parked the car and walked inside. They both had fake ID's to get inside. They went to the dance floor and started to dance. Casey waved her arms in the air and moved her hips back and forth to the neat. Henry stepped side to side.

They danced to about 5 songs before sitting down and getting some sodas. Casey escorted Henry to the girls' bathroom. "Nobody's here." She told him. They got into a stall and started kissing.

Henry pulled off his jacket. Casey slid down her top. "Hold on a sec." Casey told him. "We gotta get in the truck." She pulled up her top. Henry agreed with her and they decided to go somewhere more private.

…………………………………………..

Henry pulled the truck to an empty movie theatre parking lot. "I think we should make a movie of our own." He told her. Casey felt knots in her stomach. Her mind thought about Derek's kiss. It was a lot better than Henry's and now she was wishing Derek was there instead.

"I think we would be better as a porn movie Henry." She said while sliding to the back seat. Henry followed and sat next to her. They kissed the same way they did on her couch. Henry's hand got up to her knee and she didn't resist.

He reached the fabric of her skirt. She was really uncomfortable but decided that if this was love she might not feel the attraction straight away. Henry's hand rubbed her thigh. She stuck her tongue into his mouth and touched his.

She began to lean back, her head met a pillow and she rested her body. Henry took off his shirt. Casey saw his small muscles on his arms and didn't care if he wasn't really buff. He kissed her again. She took off her skirt. Henry felt between her legs.

They flipped o Casey was on top. "This is fun." She lied to him with a perfect smile. Henry took off her shirt. He moved in for a closer look at her breasts. He stared but wouldn't dare touch their perfectness.

Casey laughed and took off her bra. She was sitting on his knees and felt like she was a hooker or something. His hands were on her hips. "A G-String just for me? How nice of you to wear that for me." Henry said in a deep voice.

She got off of him while he finished undressing. Casey was flat on her back waiting for the thrill of her actually being in love to come to her heart. "Are you ready?" Henry asked. Casey giggled.

Henry was careful not to hurt her. She groaned in pain. She smiled a small smile. She felt like a woman now. Her mind was focusing itself on Derek. What he told her from the beginning.

"HENRY STOP!" She screamed at him. Henry got out of her as fast as she could. Casey started to cry. Henry rubbed her shoulder to try and comfort her. Casey could only think of Derek now.

"What is it baby?" He said in a soothing voice. Casey couldn't get the words out right away. "It's ok don't cry." He held her in his arms and she cried on his shoulder. She knew he would understand and slowly stopped her crying.

"I'm not ready for this. I'm sorry." She said. Henry had a frown on his face now. "You understand right?" She asked him. Henry bit his lip and pushed Casey back down. "Stop! Get off me!" She yelled at him.

"I thought you loved me!" He told her. "I love you and dammit I'm going to show you how much I love you Casey." He said while getting into position. Casey cried harder than before.

"Stop it! Please!" She yelled at him. Henry was already working his 'magic' and she couldn't stop him. Casey reached over to her phone for a chance at getting help but Henry pulled her hand back. "You loveless bastard!" She screamed.

"Oh please baby." He said without looking at her. "This is only the beginning of our love." He told her. Casey pushed him with all her strength but he was too strong. How could she be so stupid? Derek was right the whole time.

"Please stop Henry." She said with a tired voice. Henry figured that he had satisfied his girlfriend and started to end the sex for that night. Casey held in her tears as much as she could while she got dressed. They started to get home.

………………………………………

Casey was at the top of the tree by her window. Her phone said it was almost 4am. She was quiet when she crawled in so nobody would wake up. Derek was asleep in her bed, he waited for her.

"Derek." She whispered while poking his shoulder. No response. She let tears flow down her cheeks. She decided to change into her pajamas. "Derek." She said after wiping some smudged eyeliner from her face. She shook him slightly.

"Is breakfast ready?" He mumbled to her. Casey had to giggle. He recognized her voice and felt a tear drop on his nose. "Oh you're home." He whispered to her without moving. She closed the window.

"Yes." She said with several sniffles. He opened his eyes and saw her nightstand light turn on. It hurt his eyes but he didn't care once he saw her crying. "I really need to talk to you." She said while getting a tissue.

"Is everything ok?" He asked her. He sat up and realized that he was still in her room. She sat next to him. "What did that deuschbag do to you?" He asked while putting an arm around her shoulder.

"Henry, he….raped me." Casey said while burying her face into Derek's shoulder and wrapping him into a hug. He couldn't believe that those words just came out of her mouth. He returned the hug, it felt nice.

"I'm so sorry Case." He started. "I won't let that happen to you again." He continued. Casey lifted her head and looked at him; he was telling him the truth. "And I promise I will hunt down his sorry ass and make him pay for it." He finished. They both laughed.

"Thanks Derek. That was really helpful." She said while slowing down her crying. "Night." She stood up and walked to the other side of her bed. Derek went into his room and layed in his bed.

Casey turned off her lamp and slid under the covers. Her phone vibrated on the small table next to her. "No." She groaned when she found out it was from Henry. "I want to see you again. He's unbelievable." She whispered.

They had a small text conversation.

"I want to see you again." Henry.

"Sorry I'm already in bed." Casey

"Can I join you?" Henry

"Not really." Casey

"Did you have a good time tonight?" Henry

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! No way." Casey

"Well I will see you next weekend." Henry

"Doubt it." Casey

"Playing hard to get eh?" Henry

"Goodnight." Casey

"Love ya" Henry

She slammed her phone closed in anger. She never wanted to see his sorry face again. She decided that the sooner she fell asleep the sooner she could forget today.

…………………………………

Casey had been tossing and turning for half an hour. Visions of Henry raping her constantly haunted her. She knocked on Derek's door. She went inside. "What do you want?" Derek said in a sleepy voice. "It's almost 5 in the morning." He added.

"I can't sleep." She explained. She got onto his bed and slipped under his covers. "This whole rape thing is stuck in my brain and won't get out." She told him. She was flat on her back and felt paralyzed.

"Tomorrow will be better I promise." He told her while turning to face her. He didn't want any details. She turned her head to him. "Just try and sleep." He told her. He closed his eyes and pretended to be sleeping.

"Ok." She closed her eyes. She tried to think of somebody other than Henry. Eventually, she began to think about Derek. She thought about how nice he was being this week. She looked over at him to see a cute smile on his face while he slept.

She turned away from him because the guilt was too strong. She looked for something that could help her. She began to listen to Derek's breathing. She listened as it started it give a beat with his inhaling and exhaling. She tapped the side of the bed.

He made small ah sounds when he breathed. His mouth was only slightly open when he breathed. She closed her eyes and listened to their breathing become synchronized. Casey stopped tapping the side of the bed as she started to fall into a deep sleep.


	3. 2nd Diary

Derek woke up second. Casey was gone. He took a while getting out of bed, but he eventually did. There was no noise in the bathroom so he walked in without knocking. "Holy crap!" She said to himself when he saw Casey running a straightener through her hair.

"Derek!" She muttered loudly under her breath. The fact that she was without makeup or jewelry or anything made Derek see how beautiful she really was. He didn't know what to do. Casey felt weird in a good way about this. She didn't know what to do.

They stood looking at eachother for a few seconds before Casey picked up some blush. Her knee had a small cut on it from shaving and showed a drop of blood. She didn't notice it but Derek got a bandage from the medicine cabinet and handed it to her..

"Derek it's just a small cut from my razor, it doesn't need a bandage." She told him. She felt a sting from the germs and stuck the bandage on. Derek stepped back to where he was.

Derek watched her put on the rest of her makeup. Casey finished with some bronzer. "Ok." She said. Derek turned and saw Casey fully ready for the day. He needed to step in and take a cold shower.

She walked out of the room and their hands brushed up against eachother.

………………………………………………………………………………..

Derek walked down the stairs later that day and found Nora sitting at the kitchen counter pouring out some tea. "Derek, have you talked to Casey today?" She asked him. Derek was worried about what that meant.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "She says that she's just practicing the dance that she's doing in her next recital but she's never practiced for 2 hours before." Nora explained. Derek was wondering what was really going on.

"I'll go talk to her." Derek said. He turned and bolted up the stairs. Casey's door was cracked open and he went inside. Casey was staring out the window with some loud music playing.

"Casey?" He asked her. She turned to face him with tears sliding down her cheeks. "Is everything ok?" He asked. She turned and gave him a disappointed face. He wrapped her in a hug without thinking.

She wiped away her tears after the hug. "I needed that." She told him. She wiped away the smudged eyeliner. "I need to write in my diary." She said while pulling out a pencil. Derek kissed her on the cheek and left her room.

……………………………………………………………………

The only people in the house now were Derek and his dad. George was going through some files for court the next day. Derek picked the lock on Casey's diary. He was wondering if this whole rape thing was just another setup or if the really is that big of a loser.

"Dear Diary,

I went to the club with Henry again and then we decided to go somewhere more private. I had second thoughts about the whole thing and told him to take me home. Henry wouldn't listen at all. He RAPED me! It's the biggest mistake of my entire life and I would give anything to take it back. Derek's being really supportive now and I'm glad that he doesn't know about my 2nd diary where I write more personally about how I feel. Then he would know more of what I feel inside. That would be bad because then it wouldn't be secret anymore.

Love,

Casey McDonald"

Derek closed the diary and started desperately searching for this 2nd diary. He found it under her mattress. "How does she feel about me?" He asked himself. He knew that this diary would have the answers

"Dear Diary,

I cannot stand Henry anymore. I know that someday I'm getting his ass thrown in jail. It's all my fault though. These tears of mine suit the rain that we had last week. About 5 inches. I love how Derek's been helping me cope though. I think that for once I might actually have fallen in love. But it would be near impossible to love Derek."

"Near impossible?" He questioned. That meant he might have a chance. He kept reading.

"Seriously I think it's possible. He's the one thing that keeps me from going insane. We kissed before my date with Henry and it was the best kiss I've ever had….I was in the bathroom with him this morning with bad hair, no makeup, and still in my pajamas and I was totally comfortable around him. The last time I was comfortable with something like that was when I dated Sam. But I can't get my mind off of Derek. Except when I feel rotten for making Henry rape me. It was stupid for me to even start going out with him. If Derek asked me out I would probably say yes. I know I can honestly trust him to appreciate me.

Love,

Casey McDonald"

Derek slipped the diary back in its place and went in his room to plan a date for them.

……………………………………………………….

Everybody came home soon. He went to visit Casey in her room. She opened the door halfway. "Yes?" She asked him. Derek's breath smelled nice for once. He tried to give her a smile but his face didn't move.

"Hey, I was wondering something." He started. She raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing next Saturday?" He asked. They both wanted to smile but didn't. They went into her room because Edwin would probably start eavesdropping and then get Lizzie to join him.

"I guess I'm going on a date with you." She answered smugly. Derek told her his plan for the date. "That'll work just fine for me." She told him. He pecked her on the check and went to his room.


	4. Fight

Now it was Monday and Casey hadn't seen Henry all day until 9th period. The end of the day. "He jerk!" She said to him when walking in the classroom. Almost everybody there had heard Henry's story.

"I'm not taking you back." Henry said loud enough for the whole class to hear. He told everyone that he dumped her because he got what he wanted. "He took a seat in the middle of the room and Casey sat in the front row, as usual, so she couldn't see him anymore.

During the whole class she felt her inner self rotting and feeling like everything was her own fault. Why did she go out with hi in the first place? What did she see in him? "Casey." The teacher called to her.

Everyone in the class looked over at her as she looked up at the teacher "23y over pi." She answered. Everyone drew their eyes to the board. They all wanted to see what was going on with her.

"Correct." He told her. Casey sighed with relief as the bell rang 2 seconds later. Then he chased Henry down in the hallway after getting her stuff. When she got there she slammed his locker closed with all her strength.

"Whoa there Casey." Henry said with a laugh. Casey was FUMING inside, all day she was being picked on and teased because he RAPED her. Derek was watching from his locker.

"How could you tell all those people about last night. You raped me." She yelled at him. He covered her mouth. He pushed her against the locker that she slammed and held her there.

"You wanted it and don't dare to try and tell me otherwise." He yelled back. He uncovered Casey's mouth and Derek appeared beside her. "What do you want?" He asked in a rage.

"I want you to leave Casey alone." Derek yelled. Casey felt like lowering her body out of fear but remained where she was. Derek and Henry were having a stare-down and Derek was losing.

After almost a minute Derek blinked. "I guess you lose. After all you have a slut like Casey to live with." Henry laughed in a snobby way. Henry turned to leave but wasn't fast enough to escape Derek's punch.

Henry fell to his knees. Casey ran a few yards to the stairs and hid behind the railing. Henry turned to punch Derek but he used his D-fensive maneuvers to block the fist. Casey let out a squeal.

Almost everyone was already gone. Derek punched Henry again. Henry grabbed Derek's leg and pulled him to the ground. Once down, Henry punched Derek. He also got a kick in the gut.

Casey ran as fast as she could to Mr. L's office. He was reading the newspaper at his desk when she arrived. Casey bent to her knees and caught her breath. "Miss McDonald what are you doing here?" He asked with confusion.

"Derek and Henry are fighting, you gotta stop them." Casey explained. She started jogging down the hallway slow enough for the principal to catch up with his long strides. They got to Derek and Henry.

Both of them had bloody noses and were bruised when Casey put herself between them. They didn't move once they saw their principal looking down on them. They were both sent to the nurse's office and Casey was taken back to his office.

"So. Miss McDonald." He started.

"Yes sir?" She asked feeling bad for starting this fight.

"What exactly happened?" He asked her.

"Well," Casey took a deep breath. "Well I went to Henry's locker to talk to him and-"

"Talk to him about what?" He interrupted.

"I don't feel comfortable telling you that sir." She said while looking down. "And then he pushed me against his locker because he was angry at m-"

"Why was he angry at you?" He interrupted again. He didn't sound harsh or demanding, just curious.

"Because of what I was confronting him about. But Derek saw him push me and came over. He told Henry to leave me alone and then they had a staring contest. When Derek lost Henry made some mean comments about me. He called me a…a…a slut." She felt a tear ready to leave her eye.

"That's unacceptable." He said. He kept the same facial expression.

"I know. And then Derek punched him and then Henry punched back. Then before I knew it they were full on fighting. Then I came to get you." Casey finished with only one tear on her cheek.

"I understand you are upset but it's not your fault." Casey stood to leave the room. "Do you know if you might be comfortable with me asking Henry what you confronted him about?" Casey froze and turned to face him.

"Well, he will probably tell the story he has in his head instead of what actually happened." Casey met his eyes and saw curiosity. "Well on Saturday night we had a date. We went dancing. Then he drove me somewhere and did something to me I _**didn't**_ want to do." She walked out of the room.

Derek and Henry were outside of his office waiting for a talk. She looked at badly bruised bodies. She grabbed her backpack from the hall floor and went to Paul's office. She didn't bother to knock before entering.

"Paul I really need to talk to you." Casey said. Paul was reading through a parenting magazine. "Henry is such a dbag!" She said. She was completely furious. Paul was trying to determine if this was urgent because he had a tutoring appointment in 5 minutes.

"Casey calm down." He said while motioning his hand for her to sit. "Now. What's going on?" He asked. She sat in her seat and took a deep breath.

"Henry and I went out on Saturday night and he suggested we kinda make a movie. But not the kind I had in mind." She explained. She didn't want to give him any details. She wanted to keep him in the dark.

"What kind of movie?" Paul wondered. Casey's face cringed.

"Not one I was interested in seeing. Rated R." She said with a guilty face. Why were they talking movie terms?

"Like a romantic movie?" Paul asked softly.

"Definitely NOT!" She shouted getting out of her chair. "He raped me Paul and I can't hold it in any longer. That's probably why I've been getting close to Derek. We have a date Saturday night. Holy crap I have a date with my STEP-BROTHER!" She kept shouting.

"Casey calm down." He asked slowly. He was slightly disappointed with her date decision. I will be talking to Derek and Henry after they are done with the principal." He assured her.

"Fine." She said stubbornly. She exited the room to find Henry standing outside in the hall.

She decided to just walk away and wait for Derek. Henry grabbed her arm and pulled her to face him. He leaned in for a kiss but she pushed him off. "What's your problem?" She asked while staring him down.

"Well let's see. You've let me accomplish my goal of making the infamous Casey McDonald who is so innocent and pure that she would never even come close to having sex before marriage. Well I was dared to prove the whole school wrong and with your carelessness I did." He turned and walked into Paul's office.

Casey couldn't handle it. She fell to her knees and started crying. Derek ran up to her from the end of the hallway and sat by her side. "Derek you were right the whole time." She muttered to him. He put his hand on her shoulder.

"It was all a set-up Derek." She decided crying wouldn't help anything so she stood up and barged into Paul's office. "I want him arrested! He stole my sense of security and my virginity and probably my mental health." Casey yelled.

"Casey can you please wait outside?" Paul asked. Derek got Casey to come out of the door. He closed the door behind him and held Casey by her shoulders.

"I'm gonna tear his face to shreds." She yelled to the door. Derek HAD to stop this or else the rest of the staff would come and wonder what was going on. He moved in his head to kiss her.

Casey pushed him off of her. "Why are you kissing me?" She asked. Derek shrugged. "Nobody will ever want to kiss me again. I'm the dirty girl who was perfectly innocent that let her boyfriend rape her." She sat on the steps.

"How could you even say that?" Derek asked while sitting next to her. She didn't dare look him in eye. "You're smart, pretty, kind, organized, fun, and talented." He explained. He sat with her.

Casey decided to go to the car when Henry came into the hallway, she couldn't face him. Not yet. Derek strolled into Paul's office. "So what'd he get?" Derek asked.

"That's not my decision." Paul responded. "Now I need to talk to you."

Casey turned on the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot. She drove home going well over the speed limit. She ran up to her room and locked the door. 'Derek has to walk now but I just couldn't take it." She says to her diary.

She does her homework until Derek walks through the door, then the speech she was preparing was reading to be said.


	5. Packing

She knocked on Derek's room with index cards in her hand. "Derek." She started. She puts the card up to her face. "Although we have been getting closer and feeling an attraction I don't think we can pursue due to the fact of my recent sexual activity and the fact that you are my step-brother." She flipped cards.

"I know you may be hurt and I am too but I think that if we were to start going out it would have dire and terrible consequences. I wish that we could get closer from where we are now but I can't find it within me to do this with a clear head." She looked at him.

"Are you sure?" He asked. She nodded. "If that's what you want." He sat in his chair by his desk and let her go back to her room. She stuffed the speech into her desk drawer. Derek felt his heart break but knew that happiness was a choice.

"I'm such a good step-sister." Casey lied to herself. She stood by her window and looked at the stars in her sky. The moon was full, exactly the way it was when she met Henry. She pulled the curtains across and sat on her bed.

She picked up the book she was in the middle of but put it down. She knew what she had to do.

Derek and Casey bumped into eachother in the hallway. Casey sprinted down the stairs. She pulled a hoodie over her shirt and was glad she wore sweat pants that day. She went out for a jog.

She went for about 5 blocks before stopping at a small shopping area. She looked around and decided to visit a few clothing stores. She bought a necklace and some bangles. Then she started to go home. She passed a few people she knew from school but avoided them.

When she got home she noticed a few new emails in her inbox from people that she knew from school but weren't really friends with.

One said "You little whore! Henry got you to give in to him, now your porcelain reputation is trashed, slut."

Another said "Casey is a cunt."

Casey began to cry. How could people say such things about her that weren't even close to true. She never even used her tongue when she kissed Henry. She opened one more.

"Casey, this will follow you forever just like your new rep. I'll see you as a prostitute in a year. Then I can see the slut that you hide under all that pretty."

She deleted all the other emails that she had and her phone began ringing. She didn't look at who it was and threw it across the room. Derek walked in.

"Why are you chucking things at my wall Casey?" Derek asked in a sleepy daze. Casey looked at her watched and realized it was almost 2 am.

"Sorry Derek. Why are kids so cruel?" She asked in a desperate tone. Derek rubbed his eyes. He was too tired to pay attention. He looked at her and nodded his head to look like he was paying attention.

"Blah blah blah blah, blah blah?! Blah! Blah blah blah blah. Blah? Blah blah? Blah!" She said to him. He yawned and stretched his arms. "Derek are you even listening to me?" She asked.

Casey put her hands on her hips. "Oh of course I am." He said. He gave her his smile that was used for cute girls at the restaurant.

"What was the last thing I said?" She asked.

"Blah!" Derek told her. That was what he heard.

"That's not what I said! And I don't sound like that!" Casey fumed. Derek took a step back and contemplated going to his room. "What am I going to do?" She asked. Tears slid down her cheeks.

Derek sighed. He wasn't sure what he should do. "Listen Case." He told her. "It's going to be ok, happy endings are real. I'll take care of the teasing for now, you just get some sleep because midterms are coming up again." He said.

Casey nodded and walked over to her closet to get some pajamas. Derek went back to his room for some sleep that he needed. He was worried about Casey, but she was a strong woman.

Casey tip-toed down the stairs to get some tea before bed. She saw her mom and George with some papers at the dining room table. She didn't like eavesdropping but if they knew she was awake now they would be mad or concerned. They shouldn't take long.

"I mean, with your pay cut now and me having a chance of getting layed off…I'm not sure how we can send Derek AND Casey to college next year. We don't know about scholarships or anything yet." Nora said.

"Nora we'll get through this, we always have when there's been money troubles." George said. Casey held back a sigh.

"But with the new baby coming too. I'm not sure how we are going to make ends meet." Nora sighed. Casey went back to her room and closed the door, she didn't need to hear anymore. She knew what she had to do.

Casey picked up her gym bag, it was big enough. She sat and typed up a list of what she needed. "Let's see." She said.

Supplies:

Clothes

Food

Cell

Other

"Ok, more specific now." She told herself.

Clothes:

Underwear

Shirts

Jeans

Sweat pants

Socks

Shoes

"Ok. That's a good start."

Food:

Water bottles

Bagels

Crackers

Leftovers

"That's hard, I'll come back to it later."

Other:

Ipod

Tampons

Hairbrush

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Floss

Deodorant

Body Wash

Shampoo

Conditioner

Razor

Shaving Cream

Cash

"Great." The tears stung her eyes. "Let's get packing."

Casey opened the bag. She walked over to her dresser and pulled out a few tees and a bunch of long sleeve shirts. She folded them and placed them upon her bed. This needed to be organized.

Then she went to the drawer below and pulled out some jeans and khakis. Only one pair of shorts. Those were put on her bed as well. Then she grabbed a handful of white socks for her gym shoes.

Winter was coming so no flip flops or flats. She decided to bring her gym shoes, slippers, and winter boots. "What's next?" She asked. She grabbed her two favorite sweaters. Then she went and grabbed some matching underwear sets.

"Ok that's it for clothes." She told herself. She decided to grab her food last in case the parents were still downstairs. She quietly stepped into the hall. She was at the entryway to the bathroom when she heard a door squeak open.

"Casey why are you up so late?" Marti asked. Casey got onto her knees to be at a similar height as her baby step-sister. "Don't you have some crate-ish seminar in school tomorrow?"

"Socratic seminar? Yes I do, but I forgot to brush my teeth so I woke up early to do that." Casey said. Marti was the easiest to lie to. She didn't like lying, but Marti would rush down and tell her dad about what was going on.

"But it's only 3:30" Marti checked the wall clock. "That's _too _early, don't you think?" Marti asked. She was almost 10 years old, still so innocent and naïve. Casey missed the careless days.

"It's never too early to brush your teeth. So you should go to bed and get some rest tomorrow's Friday, and you're going to your friend's birthday party. Goodnight." Casey whispered. She kissed Marti on the head and tucked her in.

"Now back to work." Casey said to herself. She had about 3 hours before the neighborhood started to wake up, which would blow her cover. She went to the shower first and grabbed her stuff.

Next she opened the medicine cabinet. She grabbed all other personal care items. "Oh I should bring my vitamins." She realized. They were downstairs. She could come home during lunch at school, nobody would be home to see he snag the food.

Then she walked back to her room and opened her purse. Her life savings was in a tiny safe bolted to the back of her closet. She turned the dial to the combination and pulled out a wad of cash. It was about $420.

Then she piled things into the bag, but it wouldn't fit. She decided to remove her floss and slippers. What else? She took out the shorts and one of the sweaters. She would wear her winter coat mostly anyways.

Now things were in, but there wasn't any extra space. She opened a note book and tore out a piece of paper and began to write.

_Dear family,_

_ I have decided to ease your lives some by leaving home. I just can't live there anymore. Nobody did this to push my out of the house, I just felt like it was time to leave the nest. I won't tell you where I'm going, but I'm going to be fine. I have packed my supplies wisely and will return home before you know it. Don't' worry because I will be fine. I apologize if you're sad, but I am almost a black belt and have pepper spray._

Casey had to laugh at how cheesy that sentence. The clock said it was almost 5am. She wasn't sure if going to school would be a good choice or not. She wasn't sure how to deal with teasing, but there was a big French test. Not to mention that Socratic seminar.

_I did miss school today because I knew that it would make leaving harder than it needs to be. I will return home. Please don't worry about me. I love you all so very much._

_ Love,_

_ Casey McDonald_

Casey sight and placed the note on her pillow. Her bed was perfectly made. She tidied up the rest of the room to make sure it would be hard to detect. She took the house key off her key chain and put it on top of the note.

Things were normal in the house. Derek hadn't come down. "I'm going to the gym straight after school, so I should be home right before dinner." Casey lied to her mom. Her mom nodded in acknowledgement.

Casey had come down and stuffed some food into her purse right before breakfast. She could pay for pizza or something when she got to her destination. "I need to take the car now for an early cheerleading meet today." Casey said.

She took her things out to the car and went up to her room for a second. She picked up the phone and dialed the school's number. "Sir John Sparrow Thompson High School." The nurse answered.

Casey gave a weak cough and made her voice scratchy. "Hi Ms. J. I'm really sick." She fake coughed again. "I don't think I'm going to be in today." She breathed through her mouth weird to make it sound like a stuffy nose. Edwin taught her all this when she had first moved in.

"Oh Casey darling, are you alright?" The nurse asked.

"I have some flu symptoms but I'm not sure. My mom is taking me to the doctor today." She coughed some more. "So I'll be absent today and maybe some next week depending on how I'm feeling." She lied.

"Of course. You get bed rest and fluids. I'll put you down as sick. For today." The nurse said. She was so nice, Casey hated lying.

"Thank you. Goodbye." Casey said with another cough. She hung up the phone and went to the car. She knew Derek would be down soon. She pulled out of the driveway ad didn't look back.


	6. Super Sleuths

AN: I know that this chapter is short. But I'm working on the next one and it should be up this week. I've had a lot of homework recently which made it hard to balance time with youtube and fanfiction. So I have this story and my new one Bad Habits. I'm also writing the first chapter for a new supernatural story which will be called Huntress. So keep reading!

Casey stopped a few blocks down the road to fill the tank with gas. School would be starting in about 20 minutes. She gave a fake laugh to herself. She opened a map and decided to go to a more downtown area in London.

Once the tank was full she went inside the store. She picked up a big bag of chips for the ride and map so she wouldn't get lost. She wondered what the rest of her family was up to right now.

She knew that they would be worried when they found that note. But she had her phone with her so that she could call them eventually. She turned her mind over to Derek when the radio played his favorite song.

Derek got a ride from Sam to school and was cruising the hall. Some people made stupid cracks like 'hey have you banged Casey yet?' and 'I bet Henry got her better than you' which Derek rolled off his shoulder.

He knew why everyone was making their stupid comments, because pretty much the whole school had caught the two of them in the back corner of the gym during last year's spring dance making out.

He didn't really care because he knew it all would blow over after winter break.

Casey was walking around a busy neighborhood and saw 3 shady men staring at her in a way that made her uncomfortable. She started walking faster to keep herself safe. She was stuck by a traffic light on a busy street.

The men were walking towards her quickly. Casey Started to panic. Suddenly a girl came and wrapped her in a hug. "Hey. I haven't seen you in forever!" She said to Casey. "I know how those guys are with girls they find on the street, I'll get you someplace safe." She said quietly.

Casey hugged her back, she had made a friend her first day away from home. "Wow! It's been long time no see!" Casey said back to her.

"I think the rest of the basketball team is right around the corner." She said so the men would hear. They started to walk away. Casey and the girl walked around the corner by a friendlier looking street.

"Thanks. You totally saved me." Casey said to the girl. She had dark black hair and piercing blue eyes. "Casey McDonald." Casey held out her hand.

"Angela Lomin." The girl shook Casey's hand. "So what brings you to town?" She asked.

"Well I kind of ran away from home." Casey said, flushing from embarrassment. She was carrying her purse. Her bag was in the car in a parking garage 2 blocks over.

"Same here." Angela said. "You look kinda bad. No offense." She said to Casey. Casey's face was stung by the wind and her hair was very out of place. "Here. Let's go to my apartment and get you washed up."

"Thanks. Here, we can take my car." Casey offered. They walked to the car and drove to a business district area. Angela only looked about 19 or 20. "Is this is it?" Casey asked. Angela nodded and they parked on the street in front of the building.

"So why did you run away?" She asked. Casey wasn't sure how to explain.

"Well my boyfriend raped me. Then he turned pretty much the whole school against me, I almost made out with my step brother, and my parents might not be able to send me to college." Casey explained.

Angela blinked. "Wow. That's rough. Well you can stay with me for a while if you want."

"Cool. How long have you been around here?" Casey asked. Angela turned the key in the lock of a door to her apartment.

"Probably a year or so. I've kinda taken it upon myself to help some stray runaways until they get a job and someplace of their own." Angela explained to her. Her apartment was tidy with some magazines scattered on a coffee table.

It reminded Casey of her home except not as well known. But she immediately like it. She and Angela just clicked. "This is nice." Casey said. She put her stuff down in the entryway.

"You can sleep here on the pull out couch." Angela pointed to a couch with floral upholstery. Casey put her purse on the table and took the grand tour.

Lizzie and Edwin were the first ones to arrive home that day. They had a snack and did homework together. "I think the coast is clear." Lizzie said. She and Edwin held eachothers hands.

"I wish we didn't need to keep this a secret." Lizzie said.

"Well how do you think our parents would react if they knew we were going out?" Edwin asked her. Lizzie nodded. He gave her a peck on the cheek.

"You're right, I just don't like keeping secrets from my mom." Lizzie said. They heard a car in the driveway and ran up to Edwin's room.

Derek walked in and sat on the couch to turn on hockey. He had to walk home after a long practice. It was exhausting. "I need to have a talk with Casey." He said. He wanted to make sure she was ok because she missed school, and that never happens.

He was outside her door and heard giggling from inside Edwin's room. "Weirdo." He muttered. He opened the door. He noticed the note on her bed and picked it up. "WHAT?!" He yelled.

He set it on the kitchen counter for when the 'rents got home. Then he told Edwin and Lizzie, but caught them in the middle of a kiss. It didn't matter to him. Derek called Casey right away.

Casey was sitting across from Angela in a small diner down the street from her apartment. "It's that step-brother I was telling you about." She said. She answered the phone. "Hey Derek."

"Casey, thank god you're ok. Where are you? Are you ok?" He asked. Edwin was making a flyer to hand out to people. Lizzie was trying to get a hold of her mom at work but nobody picked up.

"Yes I'm fine. I met this girl Angela and I'm staying with her. She and I are getting some food right now." Casey said. "Don't you dare tell our parents or try looking for me because I'm like halfway across the country." She threatened.

"I can't just let you hang up." Derek said he went down the stairs to his own room. "I love you and I opened myself up to you. Why did you just leave?" He asked. He saw Nora pulling up in the car. "Your mom is home."

"My mom's home? Shit. Listen I'll call you tonight. Don't call me anymore." Casey hung up and turned her phone off. "Ok." She stuffed her phone deep down in her purse.

"Ok. So what can I get from here for 5 bucks?" Angela asked herself.

"Oh no it's ok. I have money." Casey said. Angela shushed her.

"That's not something you want to say around here." Angela explained. "This isn't exactly the safest part of the city."

"What! Casey ran away! Why would she do that?" Nora asked. "Oh man, first I lose my job and then Casey runs away." Nora said.

"You lost your job?" Derek asked. Nora nodded and attempted to hug him. He was not in the mood. He walked to the door with the keys to their parents car and opened the door.

"What are you doing?" Nora asked.

"I'm gonna go find her." Derek said. He closed the door and started driving to Central London.

George was furious about everything that had happened throughout the day. He couldn't believe any of it. "Why would she do this?" He asked. Nora placed a hand on his shoulder.

"And Derek went to look for her?" He asked. If only they knew.

"George please calm down." Nora said. She rubbed her hand up and down his back. "Casey talked on the phone with Derek and said she would call tonight."

"This is insane." George said for about the fifth time. He headed towards the door to their bedroom followed by Nora. Lizzie and Edwin sat on the couch. Marti was upstairs playing with Daphne.

What should we do?" Lizzie asked.

"I don't know. We need to find Casey." Edwin said.

An idea came to them at the same time, they were going to return being the super sleuth team and find Casey no matter what it took. They ran up the stairs to the games closet.


	7. Flyers and Starbucks

Derek had a restless night. He woke up before 10 am on a Saturday which was very bad. He tried to keep his mind off things so he cleaned his room and then played video games on the couch. After dinner Edwin came into his room with a stack of papers.

"What's this?" Derek asked his little brother. Lizzie was sitting on the stairs trying to call Casey again.

"These are flyers for when you're looking for Casey. You can hand them out to people." Edwin said. The flyer had a recent picture of Casey (Derek couldn't help but think of how hot she looked), a brief description and the house's phone number to call.

"Edwin you are amazing." Derek felt an impulse to hug his brother but stayed in his chair.

"Did Nora call the police yet?" Edwin asked.

"Yeah, but it hasn't been 24 hours yet and technically they can't do anything anyways because Casey's 18 and is legally allowed to leave the house." Derek explained.

"That sucks." Right now Dad's calling some of Casey's friends to see if they know where she is. Hang in there bro." Edwin turned and walked back up the stairs with Lizzie.

Casey was eating a piece of pizza that was leftover from who knows when. She wasn't hungry though. Her mind had been racing all day. She'd been writing a lot of poetry, which only happened when she had strong feelings.

They were love poems and she was thinking of Henry the whole time. "It wasn't love, it was manipulation and hate." She told herself all day. Anger burned inside her as though a log was smoldering from all the darkness of the world.

She looked down at the plate and was reminded that it was Derek's favorite. A small teardrop landed on the cold cheese. She didn't want to touch it because it seemed so perfect the way it was.

"That's it!" Casey leaped from her seat. She dialed Derek..

"Casey I'm so glad you called." Derek said. "Nora really wants to talk to you."

"NO! You cannot tell my mom that I called. This is between us." Casey closed the door and sat in the bathroom so Angela wouldn't overhear.

"I'm listening. I'm alone in my room for now, what do you want?" Derek asked impatiently.

"You still up for our date tonight?" Casey asked sweetly.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"How about the starbucks at Main and 5th Downtown?" Casey knew that it wasn't too far from the apartment, but far enough.

"Sure. Casual?" Derek was definitely going to make his move.

"Maybe a little dressy. Whatever you want." Casey said. "This is between us, nobody knows I called you, where or why you're going, or that you have had any conection with me at all."

"Deal." Derek hung up his phone.

Casey opened the bathroom door and stepped outside to her suitcase, this would be the night she would tell him everything.

Where are you going that you're laying out these clothes?" Angela noticed the nicer clothes from Casey's suitcase spread across the couch. Casey was wearing a black skirt that cut off just above her knees.

"Do you think this is too dressy for a date with Derek?" Casey asked her temporary roommate slash friend. She had spilled her guts about Derek to Angela.

"The shirt doesn't work, I have one that's perfect." Angela went into her room. Casey unbuttoned her shirt and tossed it on the couch. Angela returned with a red shirt in her hand. "Try this." She tossed it to Casey.

Casey looked at it with unsureness but put it on anyway. It was a deep red halter top that was a bit tight. It also came down a bit on her neck but covered her enough for comfort. "I have a shrug that would be good with this." Casey picked up a black shrug that just went over her shoulders.

So overall, Casey wore a black skirt, red shirt, black shrug, and some black heels. She grabbed her purse and was dropped off at the coffee shop. She walked in and saw Derek at a table with two drinks. He wore dressy jeans and a button down shirt.

She sat across from his and picked up the coffee. "It's you're favorite." Derek said with a smile.

"Thanks Derek. That's very kind of you." Casey faked a smile. Her stomach turned with nervousness. She felt like they should've been in an expensive restaurant. She gulped down some of her tea. It brought back memories of her mom's tea and then her mind wandered to home.

Derek waved a hand in front of her face. "Earth to Casey." He said. Casey looked at him as he slid a piece of paper across the table. "You might wanna see this before the whole city does."

Casey took the piece of paper and felt some butterflies when she touched Derek's hand. Maybe there really was something between them. She opened the paper and saw her face. Her face grew red.

She tore the paper in half and threw it into the trash. She took the coffee and began storming out of the Starbucks. Derek ran after her. "Casey don't go." Derek called after her. He chased her down half a block and caught up to her. "Just wait a second."

"Why should I, you're just trying to send me back." Casey growled. "Why should I listen to you anyway?"

"Because I love you." He told her again. Casey slowed to a stop. How could she tell if he was just saying it or really meant it? She grabbed his face and kissed him. She had ever had a better kiss than that. But she knew they could never be.

"I'm sorry." Casey folded her arms. "Can you just drive me home now?" She asked him.

"You're coming home?" Derek asked with relief.

"No, I mean my new home, away from there. I'm not going back Derek and you can't make me." Tears streaked her face.

"You don't have to if you don't want to right now." Derek hugged her.

"Take me to my new home." Casey said into his shirt.

They sat on the couch that Angela had cleaned while she was gone. There was a note on the counter. "Gonna be out until around 1ish. Feel free to eat anything."

They sat next to eachother as a movie played. After about 10 minutes Derek's slid his hand around Casey's shoulder, the same way he always had done. Casey rested her head on his shoulder.

They cuddled for the rest of the movie. Once it was over Derek felt the need to talk. "Casey?" He asked.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Why did you run away from home in the first place?"

She looked into his soulful eyes and saw sadness. "First because I was completely soiled by my ex-boyfriend, I'm not going to college, all my friends hate me now, and there's the fact that I could have an STD or be pregnant." Casey said.

"That's what I'm for. I'll always be there to protect you. I'll also be there to break Henry's face when I get the chance." He squeezed her gently.

"I know you'll be there, like right now. I truly believe you love me." Casey said softly.

"How do you know?" Derek asked while she sat up to look at him.

"You've proved it ever since we met. How you treat me. I know that you care." Casey smiled at him. She cried hot tears.

"Don't cry, you know I hate crying." Derek wiped tears from her face.

"I know you do." Casey giggled. They hugged for a short time. Afterwards they felt their heads tilting for a kiss. They kissed for a while. Then they returned to their cuddling position.

Casey started to fall asleep on Derek's shoulder and he knew it was time to go. They pulled out the bed and Derek sat next to her while she drifted off to sleep. He kissed her forehead and returned home.


	8. I'm his Btch

AN: I really want to thank all of you for your amazing reviews. They touched me. I'm so glad you all like the story so much. I'm uploading this chapter now. But when the clock strikes 12 today and when I shout "Happy New Year" I'll also be clicking the upload button and the ninth and final chapter will be coming up. 12 midnight, central time. Cause I live where my time zone is central.

Casey awoke to see Angela walking through the doorway. She was wearing a tight dress, probably out clubbing tonight. She seemed to enjoy life more fast paced. "Sorry, did I wake you?" Angela asked as she locked the door.

"It's not like I was getting a good sleep anyway." Casey said while rubbing her eyes. Angela sat on the bed next to her. Casey had told her before about how similar she and Emily had seemed.

"How did things go with Derek?" Angela asked.

"Do you want details?" Casey asked with some excitement in her voice.

"Of course girl. Tell me everything. But I'm gonna change first." Angela seemed excited.

She changed into some pajamas and Casey told the whole story of their date. "That Derek Venturi is one tricky guy." Casey finished.

"Well I hope things work out well." Angela got off the bed, took two steps, and then turned back to Casey. "Did you say Derek Venturi? The Derek Venturi?" Angela asked.

"Yeah, I guess. The Derek Venturi." Casey said suspiciously.

"You're going out with the infamous Derek Venturi and he thinks its real love?" Angela said nervously.

"Well…It is real love. Why?" Casey's smile fell to the floor.

"No I shouldn't tell you. Goodnight Casey." Angela started to walk to her room.

"Angela just tell me I can handle it." Casey said sweetly and curiously.

"No I really shouldn't. It's not important. Trust me." Angela touched the doorknob to her bedroom.

"Angela just tell me." Casey touched her hand to Angela's shoulder.

"Casey, you seriously don't need to know right now." Angela opened her door and turned to Casey.

"Then when will you tell me?" Casey asked.

"Tomorrow. We can go out for breakfast and I'll tell you there." Angela walked into her room. "Goodnight."

"Night." Casey left after the door closed and returned to her bed. "How will I be able to sleep now?" Casey grabbed her cell phone and went out onto the balcony. She pressed the call button and waited for Derek to respond.

"Hello?" He asked in a groggy voice.

"Sorry to wake you but I have a few questions." Casey said.

"I'm listening." Derek said before yawning.

"Do you know an Angela Lomin?" Casey asked.

"Why?" Derek asked.

"She my roommate and she seems to know you."

"She's your roommate?"

"I just said that."

"Casey you need to get out of there as fast as possible."

"What? Why?" Angela took the phone out of her hand and tossed it off the balcony.

"Calling for help huh?" Angela put her hands into fists.

"Yeah right. Like I need help." Casey took a punch to the face.

"You really do." Angela said.

"You just punched the wrong brown belt. The wrong dancer, cheerleader, straight A+, girlfriend of the infamous Derek Venturi." Casey punched Angela back.

"Casey, are you still there?" Derek asked the phone. A man walking on the sidewalk picked it up.

"Hello? Is someone there?" He asked the phone.

"Hi. Are you by an apartment building?" Derek asked.

"Yes. Why?"

"Can you see a girl with dark brown curly hair in pink fuzzy pajamas?" Derek asked knowing that sounded weird.

"Eww you pervert. Do you just call people and ask them to scope out for girls?" The man hung up and threw the phone into a dumpster.

"Damn it!" Derek said before hanging up. He knew what he had to do.

Casey went flying into the wall of the balcony. "No wonder you ran away. You're just a little bitch!" Angela said.

"I'm not just bitch." Casey said while looking into the apartment and then looking back down at the streets.

"Why not?" Angela asked.

"Because," Casey smiled smugly. "I'm his bitch." Derek pulled Angela down to the floor.

"Damn straight you are." Derek hugged Casey. "You really worried me." He told her.

"Come on let's go home." Casey went and started putting things into her suitcase. Derek kneeled down over by Angela.

"I know your secret." Angela said to him.

"No you don't." Derek said. "Casey ignore everything she says. I'm gonna pull the car out in front. Angela is a liar and a cheater." Derek walked out of the door looking like a superhero.

"I promise that I'm not lying to you." Angela said with some blood coming out of her mouth. "I know Derek's secret. Hell, I am Derek's secret."

"And what secret is that?" Casey asked. She kneeled down by Angela.

Angela moved her head up so she could whisper it in Casey's ear in case Derek came in. "He raped me." She whispered.

"Liar!" Casey didn't want to believe him.

"And not just me. Ask him about Jane, Melissa, and Emily." Angela smirked.

"Emily, as in Emily Davis?" Casey asked.

"That's the Emily you kept telling me about. You're bestest friend. Yes." Angela smirked.

"I don't believe you." Casey said.

"He always says its real love when it's just a plot to get you vulnerable. Not the same way Henry did, Derek is completely vicious." Angela sounded sincere. "Never turn your back on him."

"I must be crazy but I believe you. Thanks for telling me all of this." Casey got to the door and waved goodbye as Angela made herself an icepack and sat on the couch as it was folded up.

"Come on." Derek said to her through the car window to Casey. Casey was frozen in her tracks standing completely still.


	9. 25 cents

"Come on." Derek said to her through the car window to Casey. Casey was frozen in her tracks standing completely still.

"But I need to get the other car home too." Casey said. She was nervous to be alone with him now.

"Casey, it's 4am the parking garages will be closed. We can come tomorrow." Derek said.

"Oh, ok then." Casey opened the door and pretended everything was normal. She fastened her seatbelt and thy started to drive.

Derek noticed how Casey kept acting nervous and squirming while they were driving home.

"Is something wrong?" Derek asked.

"No. I'm fine." Casey said.

"Nervous about going home?" He asked.

"I guess." She answered.

"Don't worry, everyone will be welcoming you with open arms." He told her.

"Very comforting." Casey said. She kept thinking about what Angela said to her. "Who's Melissa? And Jane?"

"Huh? Who are you talking about?" Derek said smoothly.

"Angela is such a liar." Casey said to herself.

"Yeah she is but we don't need to worry about her anymore. She's ok, we're ok."

"These girls she mentioned are fake."

"Not exactly."

"What?"

"I know a Jane and a Melissa. But I never dated them or anything."

"What do you mean by anything?"

"Look. I had a little conversation with them. They tried blackmailing me and I fixed it. Case closed."

"Blackmailing you? You're only 18."

"Yeah, I'm aware."

"Are they aware?"

"Not really. Look it's no big deal, let's just forget about it."

"Fine."

"So Miss Casey, what got you to come home?" Nora asked her daughter as they were unpacking Casey's suitcase.

"Derek called while I was fighting with my roommate and then he came to save me." Casey put a hand to the giant sized bandage on her face.

"Well that's very nice of him. And strangely out of character." Nora said. She turned around and looked at Casey. Casey put on a innocent face.

"I could've handled it myself. But he's so sexist that just because I'm a girl I would've been creamed. Even though my roommate was a girl." Casey confused herself.

Derek's music came from his stereo, through the wall, to Nora and Casey's ears. "Der-ek!" Casey said as she went to Derek's room. She knocked on his door.

"What do you want? You made me drive into the city at 3am. I deserve to get some sleep." Derek said as Casey stepped into his room.

"Oh well I'm sorry." Casey glared down at him.

"Ok Casey. You're all unpacked." Nora appeared in Derek's doorway.

"Thank you mom." Casey smiled at her mom.

"I'll be downstairs." Nora started to walk down the hallway. Her job was safe, and She had been working another hour each day to help bring in some extra money.

"Ok." Casey waited for her mom to leave. "Now as for you, mister, Why do you keep acting like nothings going on?"

"There is nothing going on." Derek said.

"Sure. I've been able to tell when you're lying to me. I know you well enough." Casey lied to him.

"You really know me that well? Can you predict what I'm going to do next?" Derek smiled while getting out of his bed.

"Maybe." Casey moved her head forward and kissed him. "Am I right?"

"Very close." Derek went to his bedroom door and closed it. "But I was thinking something more risky." He pulled the strap of Casey's dress down her shoulder.

"Maybe I was thinking something a little different." Casey pulled on the strap so it untied.

"We don't need that." Derek leaned in and kissed Casey. After all she's been through he didn't want sex from her, not yet.

"I guess I'll see you later." Casey said as she walked out of his room. It was just before her bedtime. She and Derek kissed for about 20 minutes.

"I guess." He told her.

"I know." She corrected.

"I'm sure I love you." He said one last time.

"Of course you do." Casey giggled.

"I can prove it."

"How?"

Derek got down on one knee. He pulled out one of those cheap rings you can get for 25 cents at a mall. He stopped at a gas station with Casey and bought it. "Will you marry me?"

"Whoa. That's unexpected." Casey said while she bit her lip.

"Well that's life." Derek said to her.

"As nice as this is, I have to say no." Casey saw Derek's smile turn to a frown. He stood up.

"What?" He asked.

"Derek we're barely 18 and our parents would never let us." Casey explained.

"Then we can elope or something." He persisted.

"Derek this is crazy. I do like you, but I don't love you. I can't marry you, not now." Casey walked into her room.

Derek walked into his room and got completely ready for bed. He saw his door open up and Casey walked in right before she was gonna sleep. "I will wear it as a symbol of us dating though." She put the ring on her pointer finger and kissed Derek on the cheek.

"Goodnight." He whispered to her.


End file.
